Arrangement of heaters in electric ovens



k F. F. FORSHEE. ARRANGEMENT 0F HEATERS IN ELECTRIC OVENS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 13. I919.

a M w mm 9 9W h. V,. v m h mF M n d n w mm H m F a P ATTIORNEY warren STATES eaten-r GFFKZE.

FRANK F. FORSHEE, O'E FLINT, D'IICI-IIGAN, ASSIG-NOR TO X VESTINGHOUSE ELEC- TRIS PRODUCTS COMPANY, A CQRPORATION OF MICHIGAN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

iatcntcd Nov. 29, 1921.

Application filed December 13, 1919. Serial 1105344 511.

To a all/pm. it may mace/vi:

Be. it known that l, l naxn l. .Fonsnnn, a citizen of the lnited States. and a resident of Flint. in the county otllenesce and State of Michigan, have invented a new and useful improvement in the rrrangement of Heaters in Electric ()vens, of which the tollowing is a specification lltyinvention relates to electric ovens and particularly to methods of llQRt/I sucn at the bottom and one at the top of the oven.

In practising my invention, 1 provide an electric heating element comprising a plate of refractory material on one surface of which a resistor is; suitably mounted. I so mount this heating'element in a horizontal and substantially central plane in the. oven chamber that the resistor-will he on the under surface. I provide a removable plate at a small distance below the element to divide the oven chamber into two parts. I provide also a deflector located at a small distance above the heating element to more effectively prevent theradiation of any heat into the upper chamber.

In the single sheet of the accomlmnying drawing, Figure 1 is a transverse sectional view of an electric oven and Fig. 2 is a lon gitndinal sectional view thereof, with the parts therein arranged to accord with my invention.

An oven 1 is mounted on a, supporting frame 2 which is, in turn, mounted on a plurality of supports 3. The oven 1 comprises an outer casing 1 and an inner oven chamber having a top wall 6, side walls 7 and 8, a bottom wall 9 and a back wall 10. The chamber is smaller in dimensions than the outer casing 4, thus providing space on five ot the chamber 5 for suitable heat insulating material 11. The front of the chamber 5 is made flush with the outer casing 4 and an upper door and a lower door 13 are provided to permit the introduction and the removal of food and food containers.

Corrugated racks 1% are suitably secured to the side walls I and S and support trays 15, which may. be. placed any desired distam-e apart to support a plurality of cooking utensils (not shown).

Stupporting members 16 are suitably secured to the side walls, upon which rest a heating element 1? substantially rectangtilar in outline. The heating element 17 comprises a plate 13 of refractory material having an exposed resistor 19 laid in grooves 20 in one face thereof. The plate 18 issecured to a metal frame 21, which is provided with extensions 22 which engage the supporting members 16, and with handles 23. Stationary contact sockets 25 are provided in the rear of the oven, suitably insulatcd therefrom and the element 17 has projet-ting contact plugs which engage the sockets 25 and complete the circuit through the resistor. The heatinp element 17 is located in a substantially central horizontal plane and so placed that the exposed resistor is on the. under surface of the elementinstcad of on the upper surface, as has usually been the case heretofore, for a purpose to be hereinafter described.

A deflector plate 24: is located above the heating, element 17, the under surface thereof being'ot substantially V-shape toaid in properly distrilnlting the heat. The plate 24 is supported by members 24 which are suitably secured to the side walls 7 and 8.

Two supporting members 26 of substantially channel section, which are secured to the side walls 7 and 8 at av relatively small distance below the heating element 17, serve to support a metal plate 27, a pan 2%, and a broiling rack 29. The metal plate 27 isot substantially the same area as the cross section of the oven and divides the chamber 5 into a large. and a small part. The plate 2? acts also as a reflector and tends to projectthe heat upward.

It the location of the various parts is as shown in the drawing and, it the heating-element be energized, onl a small part of the heat is transmitted by radiation through the deflector plate 2.4, the larger part oi the heat bring radiated trom the exposed resistor 19 into the space immediately below the heating element and above the plate 27. The

ber.

heated air rising froni the upper surface of the heating element 17 strikes the deflector plate 24 and is deflected against the walls of the oven thus aiding in the distribution of the heat. As the heating element 17 is smaller in area than the chamber 5, convection currents of heated air are set up, substantially as shown by the arrows in Fig. 2, with the result that the temperature in the chamber above the heating element is practically uniform throughout the cha.m. It is, therefore, difficult to overheat and burn any food which may be placed in a cooking utensil on the lower of the two racks 15. If it is desired to broil a piece of meat, it is necessary only to remove the metal plate 27 and place it in the lower part of the racks let and then place the article tobe broiled on the rack 29. W hen the heating element is energized, the larger part of the heat is transmitted to the article by radiation and the operation of broiling is completed in a relatively short time. If desired, cooking or broiling operations may be conducted simultaneously, in which case the metal plate 27 is removed altogether from the oven chamber, and the food to be cooked is placed below the element. A single heating element suiiices for carryingon two cooking operations simultaneously, and may be included in either the upper or the, lower part of the chamber by very simple means.

Various changes. may be made without departing from the spirit and the scope of my invention and I desire that only such limitations shall be placed thereon as are imposed by the prior art or are specifically'set forth in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In an electric range, the combination with an oven having a chamber and means for dividing saidoven into an upper and a lower compartment, of a single electric heatingelement mounted in the upper compartment, and means for causing said heating elcment to uniformly heat said upper compartment by convection.

2. In an electric range, the combination with an oven having a chamber, ot' a single electric heating element located substan tially centrally in said chamber, means 10- cated above said heating element and adapt said element adapted to cause the space in said chamber above said element to be heated by convection and reflection.

4. In an electric range. the combination with an oven having a chamber, of a single electric heating element located substantially'centra'lly in said chamber and adapted to raise-the temperature of that partof the chamber above said element bycoi'ivection and of that part of the chamber below said element, by radiation.

5. In an electric range, the combination with an oven having a chamber, of a single electric heating element located in a horizon: tal and substantially central planein said chamber, adapted to cause the heat from said element to be uniformly distributed in the upper part of said chamber. and means located below said'element for dividing said chamber into two parts and for reducing the amountof heat carried by convection to the lower part of said chamber.

6. In an electric range, the combination with an oven having a chamber. of a single heating element located substantially centrally in said chamber. means located above said element adapted to cause the heat from said element to be uniformly distributed in the upper part of said chamber. and means located below said heating element for demeans located above said element adapted to heat the space below said element by radiated heat, and means located above creasing the depth of. and reflecting the heat FRA NK F. FORSHEE 

